Wheelmap iPhone app finds routes for wheelchair users: Getting around a city and visiting places can be hard when you are in a wheelchair because of some places are simply not designed for wheels. Wheelmap is an Apple Inc. iPhone app for wheelchair users which tells you about the accessibility of nearby restaurants, cafes, clubs, museums and other locations. it will also let you know if the place you are heading to has Platform Lift accessibility or not. Locations are color coded on a map to show how accessible they are. The current location but also any place around the world can be viewed. Maps are based on OpenStreetMap data, and accessibility data about locations can be modified and sent back to the servers by users from within the app. There is also a corresponding website showing the same information online. As with any other crowd-sourced initiative, success depends on the number of contributors, but we have good hopes for this one to succeed. As the app was created by a German, coverage is most extensive in Germany, particularly Berlin, but other large cities worldwide are starting to catch up.
Microsoft launches mobile medical app contest: Microsoft Health is running a contest for new medical apps for Windows Phone 7. It looks like Microsoft Corp. has noted the dearth of healthcare applications for their system and are hoping to inspire some developers to write more health-specific apps.
Beginning on February 18, 2011, Windows Phone 7 (WP7) partners, developers and software design hobbyists can enter their health and life science applications for Windows Phone 7 for a chance to win an Xbox 360 4GB console with Kinect. Ten (10) winning applications will be selected by our judges. Don’t delay—the contest ends June 1, 2011 at 5 p.m. (Pacific Time). Winners will be announced on June 6, 2011.
With the prizes mentioned above, it seems their intended audience is more the home-based developer rather than the big shops.
Seal Shield designs iPad case and keyboard for healthcare: The iPad is becoming more and more common everywhere within the hospital, but there have been concerns about hygiene as it cannot be thoroughly cleaned easily. Seal Shield announced a Bluetooth wireless keyboard and case for the iPad specifically designed for healthcare. As far as we know this is the first manufacturer to release any such case or keyboard. It features medical grade silicone, resistant to liquids including regular fluids such as water and coffee, but also blood and bleach. The material also contains a silver based antimicrobial additive that resists mold, mildew, fungi and microbial bacteria growth on its surface. It can repeatedly be cleaned with disinfectants. Technically, the keyboard has Bluetooth V2.0 and an integrated, rechargeable, lithium battery with 100 day standby time. The suggested retail price is $89.99.
Mobile is the future, says HIMSS CEO Health IT is very much in a transition phase right now, and right at the nexus of all the change is mobile healthcare, according to Stephen Lieber, CEO of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). "The laptop is almost becoming a bit outdated as we move to smartphones and tablets," he told mobihealthnews. "[Mobile] is the future," he said.
A weekly roundup of new developments in wireless medical technology and mHealth, by MedGadget.com.